The umber of NHS trusts which are providing, or planning to provide, food banks for nurses and other NHS staff – Lord Hain.
Northern Ireland Budget Bill - motions to regret – Lord Hain – Lord Dodds of Duncairn.
Lord Hain: My Lords, why was electrification of the London to Cardiff line not extended to Swansea, as promised by the David Cameron Government?
Lord Hain: To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of whether any British companies are supplying arms materials to the government of Myanmar for the construction of its weapons.
Lord Hain: To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have had any discussions with the governments of (1) the US, (2) Germany, (3) Japan, and (4) other relevant countries, about companies in those countries supplying arms materials to the government of Myanmar for the construction of its weapons.
Lord Hain: I too support Amendments 94 and 96 tabled by the noble Baroness, Lady Suttie, but I shall speak briefly to the amendment that I have tabled, Amendment 166. I am grateful for the support of the noble Lords, Lord Blair and Lord Hogan-Howe, and the noble Baroness, Lady O’Loan, most strikingly. For many interested parties, the starting point for any legacy case should be to find the truth of...
Lord Hain: I of course acknowledge that letter, since I helped get it together, and I have said in debate that criminal prosecutions will be extremely rare. In fact, I think I quoted the HET example of 2,000 cases and three convictions. That is not an issue between us. What we did not have then was proof that the Kenova operation works. Notwithstanding what the Minister said—I look forward to engaging...
Lord Hain: I do not disagree with anything the noble Lord has said. The problem is that the House’s role is not normally—if ever—to reject a Bill, especially one that, at least in part, has a manifesto commitment in it. So we just have to do our best to make it less unacceptable. That is what my amendments have been designed to do and I am very grateful that he has supported them.
Lord Hain: My Lords, I too pay tribute to the Minister for his open door and willingness to engage. I hope to knock on that door in the next few days to persuade him to support the Operation Kenova amendments.
Lord Hain: I thank the Minister. However—this is no criticism of him—I think that he is doing his very best to defend the indefensible and that if he were the architect of the Bill, it would not look like this. I am not expecting him to agree with me, although it would be interesting if he did. I see that he has zipped his mouth, which perhaps says it all. I will speak to Amendments 112 and 124 in...
Lord Hain: Actually, those letters, which started before my time as Secretary of State, were not pardons at all; the so-called “on the runs” letters were statements that there was no evidence, to the best of the PSNI’s knowledge at the time, to bring a prosecution against them. However, in fact, a prosecution was brought against at least one of them afterwards, so they were not pardons—how could...
Lord Hain: To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to investigate British companies involved in supplying aviation fuel to the armed forces of the government of Myanmar; and what sanctions, if any, they are considering for such companies.
Lord Hain: To ask His Majesty's Government what steps, if any, they are taking to prevent British companies from providing insurance services to vessels delivering aviation fuel to the government of Myanmar.
Lord Hain: My Lords, I will ask the Minister two brief questions. It may be that I have not understood his amendments, in which case that is my fault. First, on government Amendment 42, it seems that the trade union rules that apply normally to police officers will not apply to the ICRIR. Is that because it is a technical amendment to avoid overlap with the provisions of the Assaults on Emergency...
Lord Hain: So there is no dilution of the rights of staff in the ICRIR?
Lord Hain: Okay. Secondly, on Amendment 183, does that in any way dilute the investigatory powers of the ICRIR? This is one of the concerns about the whole thrust of the Bill.
Lord Hain: Amendment 183.
Lord Hain: He is a young man.
Lord Hain: I apologise; I do not want to detain the Committee, but what proportion of that extra spending or allocation that the Minister said Northern Ireland gets compared with other parts of the UK is down to the unique security needs of Northern Ireland that are not present elsewhere in the UK?
Lord Hain: My Lords, in speaking—briefly, the Committee may be pleased to hear—to Amendment 136, I again thank the noble Lords, Lord Hogan-Howe and Lord Blair, and the noble Baroness, Lady O’Loan, for adding their considerable names. I am indebted to the noble Baroness for her forensic analysis and for bringing her long experience into the debate through her amendments. We all understand that, due...